


undesired attention

by genresavvy



Category: The Lone Ranger (2013)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-04
Updated: 2014-01-04
Packaged: 2018-01-07 09:23:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1118227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/genresavvy/pseuds/genresavvy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>From the beginning, she knows that Cole has intentions that go beyond friendship. She knows that his efforts to talk with her, to make her feel like she can trust him are not simply him being a generous man.</p>
            </blockquote>





	undesired attention

From the beginning, she knows that Cole has intentions that go beyond friendship. She knows that his efforts to talk with her, to make her feel like she can trust him are not simply him being a generous man.

After all, she's not an idiot, and she married her childhood sweetheart's brother. She's learned how to read people's intentions, how to figure out who wants to have her over for lunch because they genuinely enjoy her company and who simply wants to ask probing questions about her marriage so they can gossip about it with their friends later that week.

Truth be told, every time the man talks to her she wants to give him the most biting reply she can think of so that he will leave her alone, stop buying her things and talking down about her husband. Maybe he'll even stop inserting himself into her son's life like a father figure despite the fact that Dan is alive and well.

Unfortunately, Cole is highly respected and admired in Colby. Because he's so wealthy and he's part of the group that brought the train to town, people are willing to overlook the implications of him buying gifts for a married woman and spending time with her son. In fact, many people have told her that she's so lucky to have a man like Latham Cole take such kind, friendly interest in her family, especially with her husband's salary as a law man.

On top of that, a part of her can't help but to be very cautious around Mr. Cole. He acts kind and compassionate, sure, but there are moments when he doesn't think she's looking or when he's giving a speech and he gets this steely look in his eyes that speaks of getting what he wants no matter the cost.

So she says enough to derail any attempts he makes at pointing out how wealthy he is and how her husband is. . .not so much, but without making him feel slighted. Every conversation with him is more trouble than it's worth, a balancing act of not encouraging him but at the same time not making him feel unwelcome.

The part about it that frustrates her is that she made herself stop writing to John because she knew that if she kept it up, it would go somewhere that neither of them wanted to go. She knew that if anything were to happen between them, it would destroy him. (He's always had a guilty conscience -- he never said as much to her, but she knows him well enough that his decision to move to the city for law school was in part because they almost kissed three days after she and Dan told him they were engaged.) It was hard to do -- she loved writing him and it hurt to stay so out of contact with someone she cared about so much.

And then comes around Latham Cole, making passes at her and obvious comparisons of himself and her husband, and he gets to stay around. He's the one she has to deal with every day.

It's awful to think, but sometimes she wishes that it was John that she had to see, because it's starting to seem like navigating her not completely gone feelings for her brother-in-law would be much easier than dealing with a rich man who seems to fancy the idea of being her second husband. Especially when she fancies the idea of him finishing work on the railroad and moving on to the next town so much more.


End file.
